Barrel Selection Series

The most exciting project I have worked on - a series of 8 barrel aged beers that won 19 medals, until now! In this series, we explored the blending of various locally cultivated fruits - blackberry, raspberry, blueberry and grapes -, with a base of Tripel, Oatmeal Stout, Barleywine and Saison, and our favorite Brettanomyces from Belgium and the amazon rainforest.

We filled the used and refurbished oak barrels, which previously held wine, and inoculated the yeast for the second fermentation. The wave-like fermentation took 9 to 12 months to perfectly balance. The harmonious notes of the funky and fruity brett character embraced every sip of these beers.

The recognition of the work appeared in various national and international beer challenges, with the attainment of 7 gold medals, 8 silver medals and 4 bronze medals. The project soon expanded to grape ales and other fronts, with the arise of Alem Bier's national recognition in high quality complex sour beers.

Photography: @eberstudio

Alem Bier - Brewery Startup

The startup of the brewery Alem Bier, in 2016, was more work than we could ever have predicted. The project began with the aquisition of a 30.000 liters per month brewery, which was setup in the heart of a winery (crazy, huh?). The setup occurred with expert guidance by our friends from Blumenau.

I was responsible for the setup, adjustments and start of the equipment. There I bought kegs and innumerable brewing equipment, employed management and delivery systems, hired O2 and CO2 supplies, brewed the first batches (set up the recipes, brewed some pilsen, managed yeast, dryhopped IPAs, CIP and passivated tanks), ordered the brewhouse manufacturer crucial adjustments to increas efficiency, projected the CIP tank and built its electrical heating system.

In another arena, I managed the administrative team, helped develop the marketing material (visual identity, labels, tags, boxes ...), ordered and negotiated print jobs, bought brewing supply, made the costs, researched taxation and provided commercial prices. The brewery soon grew! With the expansion, the barrel aged beers and a wild journey was to get started.

Beer Production

I started brewing my first batches in 2016. In my 3-vessel homebrew system I experimentally batched my first APAs, Viennas, Weissbier and other styles. That was fun (and a bunch of cleaning)! The brewery, thought different in scale, required an even more skilled sanitation and attention to detail.

Our first batches in the 3-vessel 2.500 liters brewhouse started in late 2016, with 4 classic styles - Pilsner, Weissbier, Oatmeal Stout and an American IPA dry hopped with mosaic and citra hops. My passion grew more and more, as we expanded the horizons, after much convincing of the winemakers, to brett our loved ones at the winery's cellar - 5 meters below the ground.

In this wild journey, I've cleaned and made CIP in fermentation and water tanks, brewed and assisted the soon to be headbrewer in plenty of batches, collected samples, tasted fermenting and finished products, assisted blending decisions, handled yeast, kegged, cleaned used oak barrels and patiently filled them up with CO2 and liquid love.

National & International Awards

Up to date, the brewery Alem Bier accumulates 26 medals at the most various styles - 11 gold medals, 11 silver medals and 4 bronze medals.

Other Projects

Events and Parties

The winery & brewery vigorously effervesced with gatherings of up to 750 happy clients. I was in charge of managing the marketing campaigns, alongside with the creative director or the ad agency, and managed the social media posts and ads. I hired the bands, print jobs and radio, assisted pricing and did the finances of most parties. I made logistics and set up beer coolers when needed.

Grape Ales - Fruits & Barrels

Being in a winery, it is natural we had to explore! The evolution in various woods, from French oak to Brazilian amburana and cabreuva, and the wave like progress of wild and selected yeast, taught me the patience and delight of the expressions of nature and the layers of complexity of the biotransformed fruit characters.